It's all very weird. Debate about seven-day NHS has started to walk into Pythonesque territory now. To start with, a seven-day NHS is absolutely what is needed... but somehow we need to get past the belief that the NHS exists only within a hospital. Talk about safe staffing, talk about seven-day working... the debate is mostly centred around hospitals... which is a bit odd – given that the bulk of NHS is based in the community!

Look at it... health economists are saying it; think tanks are saying it... let's forget for a moment what the BMA is saying... (as that provokes various debates about vested interests)... but the message is loud and clear... in an era of cash-strapped environments, the more cost effective way of doing things is to invest in the community.

Everyone, or at least most importantly, Mr Hunt, seems to have at least agreed that implementing a seven-day service will need significant amount of investment – but as a diabetes specialist, I am baffled. To begin with, I was told there was no money... fair enough... so we walked down the road of discussing tough choices, thinking of prioritisation... now I am being told, there is money but for... what is it... elective work? To read more, click here.

A drug used to treat diabetes could help beat leukaemia, early research in the journal Nature suggests.

During the trial scientists at the University of Paris gave pioglitazone, which is traditionally given to people with type 2 diabetes, to patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML), alongside standard treatment. To read more, click here.

Entries for the annual Celebrating DESMOND Awards are now open. The awards were created to reward excellence and share learning across the type 2 diabetes structured education programme. To read more, click here.

The first symposium in Europe to focus on silent occlusions and infusion set failures is set to take place later this month.

The event, which will also focus on optimising insulin pump therapy, will be held ahead of the 51st European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) Annual Meeting on September, 14, in Stockholm. To read more, click here.

Weight loss surgery can help control the long-term effects of type 2 diabetes, according to new research.

A study, conducted by the King’s College London and Rome’s Universita Cattolica, suggested the surgery improves symptoms both through weight loss and by changing the way the gut functions. To read more, click here.